14 Fist 10: Mission

Fist 10: Mission

"So?"

Jaune blinked, looking with confusion at the blonde girl who asked the question, scratching his head.

"So?..." Yang sighed and pointed to her hair, which had been properly cut at a salon and styled as best as possible, giving her an appropriate look that complemented her style quite well.

"The hair! How does it look?"

"Oh! Pretty good, I think you look fantastic" Jaune might not be a Casanova, but he knew when it was time to compliment a girl. It avoided a lot of trouble if you knew how to do it without overdoing it.

Yang seemed satisfied as she smiled at the compliment, she turned her head along with her upper body. If she still had long hair, this gesture would have made it ripple in the wind, gently brushing against Jaune's nose, leaving behind a pleasant aroma.

Instead, now this gesture just caused her short hair to shake a bit, and she noticed, causing her smile to fade and a pout to replace it. With some irritation, she grabbed Jaune's hat and put it on, crossing her arms in a bad mood.

"At least your hat serves some purpose, gangsta-boy"

Jaune blinked again; that was a horrible nickname.

"That's a terrible nickname. I vote for a change"

Yang laughed and shook her head. "My nicknames are the best! Rejected vote"

Jaune would have objected, but then came the call over the loudspeaker—their Bullhead was about to depart.

"Come on! I didn't get up this early to miss our ride!" Yang dashed off, and Jaune could only follow.

He glanced at her sideways; it had barely been two days since those revelations. Yang could mask her emotions pretty well for a 15-year-old girl. Her venting during their "struggle" probably helped a lot.

They quickly boarded the Bullhead that would take them to Patch. He hoped these "vacations" wouldn't get too complicated. He really needed a break.

"You'll love it! There are so many amazing places in Patch. I'll be the best guide you can imagine!" Yang exclaimed, proudly pounding her chest with her palm.

Jaune smiled; her enthusiasm was a little contagious.

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A few days later, at Beacon.

The sound of the clockwork mechanism echoed in the room, breaking the silence that had filled the space. Qrow sighed, wanting to stretch a bit but grimacing as he felt his muscles still sore. He had mostly healed, but there were lingering pains—nothing major, just bothersome.

Behind a desk, Beacon's headmaster, Ozpin, replayed for perhaps the twelfth time the video Qrow had managed to salvage from his broken scroll. That hadn't been an easy task.

Finally, after who knows how long, Ozpin spoke.

"Does anyone else know about this?" His voice was somewhat low, not allowing any emotion to project, but anyone who knew him could see the glint in his eyes.

"The kid and I were the only ones who made it out of there alive, Although to say I got out of there would probably be giving myself too much credit, they totally kicked my ass" Qrow clicked his tongue, the memory of that moment still bringing phantom pains.

"I see. And you say he's willing to teach you this... 'martial art' correct?" Ozpin held his chin in contemplation. For someone who had lived hundreds, even thousands of years, there were few things that could genuinely surprise him.

This day was one of those rare moments. He still remembered that pillar of light that shot up into the sky and the tremor that shook the entire continent.

It had been a great mystery and an unprecedented concern. All the kingdoms had dispatched Huntsmen in the direction where it originated to investigate such an event.

He hadn't expected to learn so quickly and even have visual evidence.

He replayed the video again, examining each frame. Even for someone like him, it was difficult to describe the awe he felt.

Such strength, such power, a human and a Grimm so peculiar. This could be the key to completely changing the stagnation he had been trapped in for hundreds of years.

"Do you think I could meet him?" His question made Qrow, who had been picking his nose, look at him in astonishment.

"Probably, why not? He's a smart kid, very intelligent. I don't think your presence would unsettle him" Qrow could still recall his conversation with Jaune; the aura that boy emanated was anything but ordinary.

It was as if he were talking to a seasoned Huntsman, an expert. Considering the boy's strength, Qrow believed Jaune hoped he wouldn't arrive alone in Patch.

"Then let's go; keeping someone waiting is bad manners"

Qrow nodded. There was only one day left before the four-week deadline he agreed upon with Jaune, so leaving now seemed appropriate.

"You won't tell anyone else?" Before leaving, he asked Ozpin a question.

The headmaster paused as if considering it for a moment before shaking his head.

"This is an opportunity, a great one if what this boy says is real and he can teach these 'martial arts' to anyone. Then we can discuss informing more people, although we'll probably have to discuss it with him first. After all, the master's word is the law or something like that. I don't quite recall that saying"

Qrow shrugged. He had fulfilled his part; it was time to go and become stronger. He wouldn't let any stupid Grimm hit him like that again.

That wasn't his style.

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Sweat dripped from her chin, but she didn't stop swinging her sword. She had been at it for hours, so long that even her aura couldn't prevent the encroaching fatigue.

"You annoy me"

Those words kept echoing in her mind with each swing of her sword.

She gritted her teeth, a stifled scream almost escaping her lips. In her distraction, she made a misstep and fell to the ground, greeted by a puddle of sweat and her reflection.

Gasping, she struggled to her knees, fists clenched.

"You're losing control." A deep, masculine voice reprimanded her. Jade turned to see her father standing to the side, arms crossed.

"Feelings like those have no place in combat. You must maintain control." He didn't raise his voice, yet his words made Jade tremble slightly as she nodded.

"Yes, sir"

She rose to her feet, gripping her sword more firmly.

The memories of that night flooded back, and she tried to shake them off to no avail.

"Your stance is wrong, you get distracted too easily" Lost in her thoughts, she could barely react as her father's sword swiftly aimed toward her side.

Her block was quick but careless; her body was sent flying several meters through the air, crashing against a tree.

Almost all the air escaped her lungs.

Her father's dark blue eyes regarded her disapprovingly.

"Now I see why you lost. I was too lenient with you. That changes now. I'll teach you to fight properly, and then we'll go for your brother. You won't lose again"

Jade swallowed hard and nodded, straightening herself and getting ready. She wouldn't lose, not again.

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"They're not excited! Our final mission as a team!"

Coral's voice was lively and vibrant, filling the white room effortlessly.

"After this comes graduation... any plans?" Cyan, a short, pale-skinned guy, asked, looking at his teammates. They were about to graduate from the Atlas Academy, with just one final mission left as their last exam.

"I'll travel everywhere! Atlas is too boring; I want to see more places!" Plum, a petite freckled girl, said, studying an extensive map on her scroll.

Coral seemed pensive before responding. "I guess I'll stay in Atlas for a while. There's no place like home, after all." Plum rolled her eyes at this.

"Boring! How about you, Cyan? I heard your brother is stationed on the border. Are you going to see him?" Plum asked curiously.

Cyan thought about his brother and smiled. "Yeah, it would be good to see him again"

As the three chatted animatedly, the room's door opened, and all three pairs of eyes turned.

A tall, stunning woman with a atletic and curvaceous figure entered. Her snow-white hair elegantly swayed, and the coldness in her gaze seemed to freeze the room, causing the lively chatter to extinguish.

She walked to her bed and sat silently, reviewing some data on her scroll.

The other three occupants glanced at each other uncomfortably.

Four years. Four years of being part of the same team, and it seemed like nothing had changed since the first time they met.

Plum coughed, trying to lift the mood again, and greeted the cold beauty who was her teammate.

"Hey, Winter! Are you ready for our final mission!?"

Winter looked at her with icy blue eyes that revealed no emotion and nodded gently. "I've reviewed the information and confirmed the objectives. We shouldn't have any problems"

Plum couldn't help but let her smile falter slightly. "Having confidence is good! We were also talking about what we'd do after the mission. Do you have any plans?"

Winter didn't hesitate to respond.

"I'll undergo training to become a specialist in the Atlas army" It seemed like a decision made long ago.

"That's great! You'll surely excel..." Plum then realized she didn't have more topics for conversation and awkwardly coughed.

"We should get ready; this time, we're going near the borders with the island of Vytal. The weather might be different from what we're used to" Cyan quickly changed the subject of conversation.

At his words everyone nodded in agreement.

"I have already prepared everything I need" everyone except Winter who seemed to be one step ahead of them.

"Then we'll hurry!" So the room emptied, leaving only Winter.

Feeling the silence, the young woman furrowed her brow slightly before returning to studying the mission details on her scroll.

"Sightings of a strange Grimm at the border... a settlement has lost contact, so we must investigate, report, and if possible, eliminate the Grimm" It was a mission unlike any they'd had before.

There wasn't much information about the sighted Grimm; the settlement couldn't provide enough data before losing contact.

The lack of information was dangerously unsettling. The fact that a settlement had lost contact was also not good news.

The only reason their team was going instead of a team of veteran Huntsmen was due to the strange Grimm activity that had been taking place. Something had agitated many of them, prompting the kingdoms to deploy numerous Huntsmen these days.

Winter double-checked that everything she needed was in place before returning to her scroll.

She hesitated for a moment. Did she really have to say goodbye to Weiss before leaving?

She didn't want to worry her younger sister.

"it'll be a quick trip, we'll finish this mission in the blink of an eye, there shouldn't be any issues" she concluded, deciding not to make the call.

She'd surprise her when she returned; it had been a while since she'd been home.

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Note:

It's been a bit of time; I've been really busy, but I didn't want this year to end without leaving another chapter, even if it's short. Work calls, friends, and 2024 will be a year of changes.

I don't know when the next one will come out, but it'll definitely be longer, at least as long as an average chapter of this story.

In the meantime, happy holidays, Merry Christmas, and I hope you enjoy this early gift. Until we meet again, friends.